Nature & Whole Body Wellness
Teens to Trails’ intern, Nora Fox, hiking the Jordan Cliffs Trail to Penobscot Mountain in Acadia National Park.
I grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota—the land of 10,000 lakes—surrounded by endless walking, running, and hiking paths and (of course!) water opportunities like sailing, canoeing, kayaking, and paddle boarding.
Getting outside was a large part of my upbringing and community culture. Each time I left my house, I encountered people participating in some form of outdoor exercise, from walking their dog to running to biking to paddling on the lake. In other words, outdoor recreation was the Minneapolis status quo.
While I took advantage of these outdoor opportunities growing up, I never knew how much they could actually change my life. Reflecting now, I had not yet experienced how the outdoors could transform my well-being and whole body health—both physical AND mental. It was not until my time studying at Bates College that I realized outdoor recreation provides whole-body wellness.
During my Freshman year, I was immersed in an intense rowing and academic schedule and had little free time for myself, my friends, and my hobbies. One day, I decided to skip practice, put aside my homework, and go for a hike. A few friends and I squeezed into a car and headed to the mountains. I don’t remember much about the hike, but afterward, I felt calm and at peace. I also felt like I had accomplished something big and felt proud of myself for doing so. This was the first time in a while that I’d felt this way. And while I don’t endorse skipping out on responsibilities, taking some time for myself changed my life!
Slowly, I drifted away from the rowing team and toward the beautiful Maine mountains, lakes, rivers, and ocean. Getting outside and immersing myself in the vast landscapes Maine has to offer reminded me how small I am compared to the world around me. Finding my place in nature was both grounding and calming. It allowed me to destress, refocus, and return to school as a more energized and confident version of myself. I noticed that my schoolwork and grades even started to improve.
Most importantly, though, I was able to form deeper connections with my friends as we shared these beautiful, life-changing outdoor experiences. Any hike or bike ride has a challenge, and enduring that struggle with friends makes it all the more rewarding.
Through my work at Teens to Trails, I want to give other students these life-changing outdoor experiences. I want them to experience how Maine’s beauty can ground and calm and also push them to be a better and stronger version of themselves. In simpler terms, I want them to find whole-body wellness through nature.
That is why I spent my summer creating a statewide database of places that rent and lend outdoor gear to increase access to the outdoors. In addition to helping Teens to Trails’ school programs (i.e. students), Maine Trail Finder is hosting the data, and Maine GearShare is using it to develop their services, thereby helping a much larger community. The data may even be used to build or streamline gear rental systems later down the road.
With over 40% of students in Maine reporting mental health problems as of 2022, I feel proud to be working on a project to increase access to the outdoors and help other teenagers like me find peace, happiness, and strength in nature.